Scottish Executive

Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there is any written guidance for lifelong care staff on guardianship.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Scottish Executive has issued various codes of practice under section 13 of the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000. There is one for local authorities exercising functions under the act and one for guardians and persons authorised under intervention orders. Local authorities may also have prepared guidance themselves for their care staff.

Central Heating

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many pensioner households currently (a) have and (b) do not have central heating, broken down by local authority area and parliamentary constituency

Hugh Henry: The information requested is not held centrally. The programme to deliver central heating to all local authority and housing association stock will be completed during 2004 and for tenants transferring from Glasgow City Council to a new social landlord during 2006. In the private sector an estimated 40,000 owner occupiers and private renters aged 60 or over will have central heating installed by the end of March 2006.

Civil Servants

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many of its civil servants are currently engaged in work on external affairs.

Mr Jim Wallace: Thirty-four civil servants in the Executive are currently engaged in its work on external affairs: 23 in the External Relations Division, nine in the Scottish Executive European Union Office and two staff in Washington DC.

Communities

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is now its policy to introduce neighbourhood wardens across Scotland.

Ms Margaret Curran: Yes, it is our intention that neighbourhood warden schemes operate throughout Scotland.

Community Safety

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when the neighbourhood warden schemes announced in its press release SESJ055/2002 will become operational.

Ms Margaret Curran: Funding will be available from April 2004. The rate of implementation will depend on the planning, consultation and operational processes of local authorities and their community planning partners.

Community Safety

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what specific measures will be introduced as part of its new approaches to neighbourhood management other than those mentioned in its press release SESJ055/2002.

Ms Margaret Curran: In addition to the £20 million for neighbourhood wardens £10 million will also be available in 2004-06 for a range of other measures directed at tackling problems resulting from anti-social behaviour. The specific measures to benefit from this funding are likely to vary from area to area and have not yet been decided in detail. They could, however, include the creation of specialised anti-social behaviour teams within local authorities, intensive support projects for anti-social families and more extensive use of mediation services.

Concessionary Travel

Shona Robison (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what account was taken of levels of car ownership in each local authority area when funding was allocated for the national concessionary travel scheme.

Shona Robison (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what account was taken of the frequency of existing bus services in each local authority area when funding was allocated for the national concessionary travel schemes.

Shona Robison (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what account was taken of the numbers of pensioners in each local authority area when funding was allocated for the national concessionary travel scheme.

Lewis Macdonald: General support for local authority expenditure on concessionary travel is provided through the general Grant Aided Expenditure formula based on shares of retirement age population. The additional resources to fund the enhanced concessionary travel arrangements introduced on 30 September were allocated by the same mechanism.

Crime

Kay Ullrich (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-27945 by Mr Jim Wallace on 22 August 2002, what the source was for the information given on the level of recorded crime in the Strathclyde Police Force area since 1975.

Mr Jim Wallace: The recorded crime information given in the answer to question S1W-27945 was extracted from the statistical collection collated centrally by the Justice Department.

  The statistical form provides a simple count by crime type of the numbers of crimes and offences recorded and cleared up by the eight police forces in Scotland. A return is made for each local authority in Scotland and these are aggregated to give police force and national totals. The statistics are published in the statistical bulletin Recorded Crime in Scotland.

Fire Service

Ms Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will give COSLA an assurance that it will be fully included in any review or negotiations regarding firefighters’ pay and conditions.

Dr Richard Simpson: COSLA, representing the Fire Authorities who are the employers, are an integral part of the National Joint Council where firefighters pay and conditions are negotiated. They will unquestionably be part of the consultation process now taking place under the chairmanship of Sir George Bain who is leading the Independent review of the fire service, which will include examining the pay and conditions of service of firefighters.

Health

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the presence of fluorosis in teeth is associated with bone disease and a higher level of bone fractures.

Malcolm Chisholm: Some research projects have linked sustained exposure to very high fluoride concentrations with bone disorders and fractures. Such outcomes have been detected in countries where fluoride is present in concentrations far above concentrations recommended for use in artificial fluoridation schemes.

  An expert scientific review, published in 2000, concluded that, aside from a possible increase in the prevalence of dental fluorosis of aesthetic concern, there is no evidence of other adverse effects on health, where fluoride is used at recommended doses.

Maritime Safety

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-28868 by Lewis Macdonald on 18 September 2002, when the brochure promoting the location of the European Maritime Safety Agency in Glasgow was published.

Lewis Macdonald: The UK position in relation to the siting of EU Agencies is reserved and a matter for the UK Government. The brochure summarising the case for Glasgow was produced jointly by the Executive, the Department for Transport and the Scotland Office and was circulated to the EU Institutions and member states in May 2002, and to Scottish MEPs in June 2002.

Maritime Safety

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-23950 and S1W-24928 by Mr Jim Wallace on 3 April and 7 May 2002, why the brochure summarising Glasgow's case for securing the location of the European Maritime Agency was not mentioned in these answers.

Mr Jim Wallace: Questions S1W-23950 and S1W-24928 asked about efforts and representations that had been made on the issue of European Union agencies' location. The brochure summarising Glasgow's case on the location of the European Maritime Agency was distributed to the other member states and the European Commission after these questions were answered.

Maritime Safety

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-28868 by Lewis Macdonald on 18 September 2002, whether it has made any representations, or has been involved in any joint representations with Her Majesty's Government, to secure the location of any European agency in Scotland other than the European Maritime Safety Agency.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Scottish Executive is in touch with the UK Government on a wide range of issues, including the location of EU agencies.

Maritime Safety

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-28868 by Lewis Macdonald on 18 September 2002, in what ways, other than by circulating a brochure, it has sought to promote the case to locate the European Maritime Safety Agency in Glasgow.

Lewis Macdonald: The UK position in relation to the siting of EU Agencies is reserved and a matter for the UK Government. The Executive is in regular contact with the Department for Transport about the Glasgow bid. However, decisions about promotion are ultimately a matter for the UK Government.

Mental Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive why it has not followed the Health and Community Care Committee’s recommendation to increase Mental Illness Specific Grant in line with inflation.

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what evaluation it has made of any impact that not increasing Mental Illness Specific Grant in line with inflation has had on voluntary organisations that use this funding to provide services.

Malcolm Chisholm: We last increased Mental Illness Specific Grant with effect from April 2001, when we increased it from £18 million a year to £19 million a year. We have just announced that we are increasing the grant by a further £1 million, to £20 million with effect from April 2003, as part of the outcome of the recent Spending Review.

  These increases reflect the priority we give to the grant in supporting around 400 small-scale projects in local communities throughout Scotland that assist people with mental health problems.

Mental Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what evaluation has been made of the effectiveness of the Mental Illness Specific Grant.

Malcolm Chisholm: An external evaluation of Mental Illness Specific Grant (MISG) was conducted in 1997 by the Nuffield Centre of the University of Glasgow. It reported favourably on the Grant’s continuing value in providing mental health services which meet needs locally.

  We acknowledge MISG's importance and remain committed to its continuance.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-26497 by Mr Jim Wallace on 18 July 2002, why the cost of non-domestic rates was included in the costing of the public sector comparator.

Mr Jim Wallace: To facilitate comparison of the new prison and houseblock options in the Scottish Prison Service Estate Review.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-26497 by Mr Jim Wallace on 18 July 2002, whether the cost of non-domestic rates was included in the private sector model and what the reasons are for the position on this matter.

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-27919 by Mr Jim Wallace on 26 August 2002, how including non-domestic rates in the costing of a public sector prison, but not including non-domestic rates in the costing of a private sector prison represents best value to the taxpayer.

Mr Jim Wallace: No. The private sector model was based on the contract cost of privately-managed prisons and non-domestic rates are not a contractual cost. The net present value of non-domestic rates is estimated to be approximately £3 million over 25 years. The public sector comparator included non-domestic rates to facilitate comparison with the new houseblock options. The total contractual cost plus non-domestic rates for the private sector model is £209 million compared with the public sector comparator of £429 million on the same basis.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-21183 and S1W-24978 by Mr Jim Wallace on 25 February 2002 and 24 July 2002, how it concluded that the difference between tendering costs for a privately-financed project and design costs for a publicly-financed project is not significant in a project of this scale, given that the Scottish Prison Service did not collect tender cost data in respect of the contract for HM Prison Kilmarnock.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:

  The PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Review calculated the total cost of a new 700-place private build private operate prison as being around £206.2 million in net present value terms (around £453.2 million in cash value real terms), compared to £453.4 million in NPV terms (£855.4 million in CVR terms) for the public sector comparator. The tendering and design costs will not be significantly different due to the costings for the design and service specification for any new prison in the Estates Review, for both the Private Build Private Operate option and the Public Sector Comparator, being based upon those for HM Prison Kilmarnock.

Prison Service

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive (a) what records the Scottish Prison Service holds on asbestos removal from its establishments, (b) who has responsibility for accurately updating any such records, (c) where and for how long such records are held and (d) what process is used in respect of archiving them.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  (a) Every establishment maintains a register of asbestos identified by surveys carried out in the mid-1990s: this records where asbestos was identified, where it has been removed, and where it is still present, in accordance with current legislation.

  (b) The Estate Management Unit, on behalf of the Governor of the Establishment.

  (c) Records are held in each establishment and are updated as required when alterations or new work is carried out.

  (d) Files will be retained as required under legislation and then archived centrally.

Prison Service

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any former tied housing stock sold to employees of the Scottish Prison Service or others contained asbestos and, if so, what action it took to advise purchasers of this situation at the time of the sale.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:

  Staff quarters would be designed, built, and maintained in accordance with Building Regulations and Health and Safety Legislation in force at the time. As with all public sector housing it is highly unlikely that any asbestos would be present other than in the form of asbestos cement sheets which were commonly specified up until the 1970s for roofs [garages] and verges.

  It is not known whether any former staff quarters sold by the SPS contained asbestos. It is standard practice for purchasers to instruct their own survey of a property and any issues raised by their surveyor or their solicitors are dealt with as part of the conveyancing process.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-27908 by Mr Jim Wallace on 22 August 2002, why it did not base its estimate of staffing for the public sector on the submission prepared by Mr Eric Murch of HM Prison Low Moss, Constructing the Future , which stated that 58 staff for every 100 prisoners were required in a modern public sector prison, rather than the 78 staff per 100 prisoners suggested by the Scottish Prison Service Estates Review.

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, in relation to the Scottish Prison Service Estates Review, whether it will provide a breakdown of the estimate of staff required in the public sector comparator in the same or similar form to Annex 5 of the submission prepared by Mr Eric Murch of HM Prison Low Moss, Constructing the Future .

Mr Jim Wallace: Because it would not have given a realistic result. The staffing levels proposed in Constructing the Future were based on scenarios specific to Low Moss’s situation, and in particular the fact that it would only be housing remand and short term low-risk prisoners. To work out the operational costs of the public sector comparator for the Prison Estates Review three comparator prisons were used; Shotts, Perth and Edinburgh. These three establishments are core prisons and as such are more representative of what a fully flexible 700-place establishment would entail in terms of operational requirements such as prisoner mix, staffing regimes and prisoner escort requirements.

Prison Service

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) total budget and (b) underspend for HM Prison Cornton Vale has been in (i) 1999-2000, (ii) 2000-01, (iii) 2001-02 and (iv) is in 2002-03 to date.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is contained in the following table.

  


Financial Year 
  

Budget
(£ million) 
  

Under (Over) Spends
(£ million) 
  



1999–2000 
  

N/A* 
  

N/A* 
  



2000–01 
  

8.1 
  

0.3 
  



2001–02 
  

8.5 
  

(0.2) 
  



2002–03 
  

8.8 
  

1




  Notes:

  *Budget details are no longer retained.

  1. Projected spend is currently in line with budgets allocated.

Prison Service

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-28224 by Mr Jim Wallace on 2 September 2002, when it will publish its contract with Medacs for medical services in prisons.

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-28224 by Mr Jim Wallace on 2 September 2002, why its contract with Medacs for medical services in prisons agreed in 2000 has not yet been published.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:

  The contract will be published in due course. the SPS are currently in discussion with the supplier, Medacs, about the publication of the contract and the deletion of commercially sensitive information.

Prison Service

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the statutory requirements for chaplaincy support for prisoners are being met currently throughout Scotland and in particular at HM Prison Noranside.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:

  Due to difficulties in sustaining provision of the appropriate level of chaplaincy services to all prisoners, the SPS is moving towards a contractual agreement for provision of chaplaincy from the Church of Scotland and the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland.

  In the interim, arrangements have been made for prisoners at Noranside to attend religious services in the community. In addition, where appropriate, a Minister or Priest will visit the individual in the prison.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list each default notice received under paragraph 46 of the Minute of Agreement Between the Secretary of State for Scotland and Kilmarnock Prison Services Ltd for the Design, Construction, Management and Financing of a Prison at Kilmarnock , showing the date on which each notice was received and the nature of the default.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  There have been no such notices.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-12540 by Mr Jim Wallace on 21 February 2001, whether the cost of prisoner escorts is included in the figure for the total annual cost per prisoner place at HM Prison Kilmarnock.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  Yes, the average Net Present Value per prisoner place of around £11,000 pa includes the cost of prisoner escorts.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what persons provide a prisoner escort service to and from HM Prison Kilmarnock other than employees of the prison operating company.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  The Scottish Prison Service and the police, as operational considerations dictate.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-28728 by Mr Jim Wallace on 26 September 2002, whether it will give any details it has concerning the nature and content of each notice regarding insurance under paragraph 6.8 of the Minute of Agreement Between the Secretary of State for Scotland and Kilmarnock Prison Services Ltd for the Design, Construction, Management and Financing of a Prison at Kilmarnock .

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:

  As required by the contract, Kilmarnock Prison Services Limited (KPSL) gave the SPS advance notification of possibly being unable to meet the contractual insurance requirements but indicated that they would be negotiating with insurance providers. As a result of those negotiations, KPSL subsequently advised the SPS that appropriate insurance cover had been obtained.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list each occasion the contract mechanism for variation of price has been applied, as referred to in paragraph 33 of the Minute of Agreement Between the Secretary of State for Scotland and Kilmarnock Prison Services Ltd for the Design, Construction, Management and Financing of a Prison at Kilmarnock .

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list all occasions the contract mechanism for dispute resolution has been applied, as referred to in paragraph 63 of the Minute of Agreement Between the Secretary of State for Scotland and Kilmarnock Prison Services Ltd for the Design, Construction, Management and Financing of a Prison at Kilmarnock .

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  There have been no such occasions.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many prisoners were transferred from HM Prison Kilmarnock to HM Prison (a) Barlinnie, (b) Greenock and (c) Edinburgh in each of the last six months.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  The numbers of prisoners transferred from HM Prison Kilmarnock were:

  


Month 
  

Barlinnie 
  

Greenock 
  

Edinburgh 
  



April 
  

3 
  

0 
  

2 
  



May 
  

12 
  

1 
  

1 
  



June 
  

12 
  

3 
  

1 
  



July 
  

4 
  

0 
  

4 
  



August 
  

4 
  

0 
  

2 
  



September 
  

7 
  

0 
  

0

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the variable R is presently lower than the sum of the variables F, I1 and I2, as referred to in paragraph 7 of schedule E to the Minute of Agreement Between the Secretary of State for Scotland and Kilmarnock Prison Services Ltd for the Design, Construction, Management and Financing of a Prison at Kilmarnock .

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  Yes.

Prison Service

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what statistical information is collected regarding young people held in penal institutions, as recommended in section 2.8 of Secure Accommodation Advisory Group Interim Report May 2001.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  A wide range of information is collected each time a young person is held in a penal establishment. The information includes personal information such as gender and date of birth; the circumstances of the detention (whether on remand under an unruly certificate, as convicted awaiting sentence or as a sentenced prisoner); the length of time spent in custody, and the main crime/offence for which they were detained. Statistics on gender, age and time spent in custody of all young people remanded in custody under an unruly certificate are published each year in Tables 16-18 of the Prison Statistics bulletin.

Rail Network

Nora Radcliffe (Gordon) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the proposed rail link between Airdrie and Bathgate will be a priority under its spending proposals for 2003-06.

Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Budget 2003-06 contains sufficient resources to fund the necessary progress on all of the priorities set out in the Executive’s Transport Delivery Report, Scotland’s Transport: Delivering Improvements .

Scottish Executive Staff

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many of its Security Branch (a) employee and (b) former employee records held by Chessington Computer Centre it has accessed in an attempt to resolve payments for backdated travel time allowances and how much it has cost to access these records.

Mr Andy Kerr: The Scottish Executive’s payroll provider, ADP Chessington, has accessed a total of 15 current employee and 10 ex-employee records at the request of the individuals concerned. The information was provided at a cost of £490 plus VAT.

Social Justice

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects to meet target 3 of the social justice section of its 2003-06 spending proposals.

Ms Margaret Curran: The basket of indicators for measuring whether we are closing the opportunity gap in disadvantaged communities is intended to monitor progress over time. Each community is at a different baseline in respect of the indicators for target 3 so will achieve the target of reaching the national average at different rates.

Social Justice

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive why it has not set a deadline for meeting target 3 of the social justice section of its 2003-06 spending proposals.

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive why it has not set a deadline for meeting target 9 of the social justice section of its 2003-06 spending proposals.

Ms Margaret Curran: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-29344 on 30 September 2002. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

  http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Social Work

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many vacancies currently exist in each local authority social work services department and how many of such vacancies are for qualified social workers.

Cathy Jamieson: The latest Social Work Services Inspectorate Annual Report due to be published in November will provide information on staffing and vacancies at a local authority level.

Social Work

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to address the increase of 899 between 2000 and 2001 in the number of vacancies in social work services departments, as identified in table 7 of Staff of Scottish Local Authority Social Work Services, 2001 .

Cathy Jamieson: The comparison made is based on less complete information collected in 2000. The Scottish Executive is sponsoring a National Recruitment and Awareness Campaign which will target the areas where there is most difficulty. To inform this activity, local authorities are being asked by the Executive to detail the particular problems in their areas.

Social Work

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how the 17% vacancy rate for social work services staff in the Borders, as identified in paragraph 7.3 of Staff of Scottish Local Authority Social Work Services, 2001 , is affecting service provision.

Cathy Jamieson: The effect of any staff shortages on service provision is a matter for the Borders local authority which is required by statute to deploy resources to meet the social work needs of the people in its area.

  The Scottish Executive is actively addressing the staffing issue on a Scotland-wide basis. The wide range of our activities includes the National Recruitment and Awareness Campaign, which I launched on 22 October. This will target the areas where there is most difficulty. To inform this activity, local authorities are being asked by the Executive to detail the particular problems in their areas.

Sport

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will recommend to  sportscotland that it should, in consultation with the appropriate representative sport associations in Scotland and Ireland, seek to form an international federation that would permit an annual shinty/hurley fixture between Scotland and Ireland to be acknowledged and recognised as an international fixture.

Dr Elaine Murray: It is not part of  sportscotland’s responsibilities to seek to establish international sporting federations. Shinty/hurling is not a single sport: the annual shinty/hurling fixture is a one-off hybrid event played under composite rules. So far as shinty is concerned, it would be for the Camanachd Association to seek to identify other countries where shinty is played and then explore with interested parties there the formation of an international governing body for the sport.

Sport

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when  sportscotland will next meet the Scottish School Sports Federation.

Dr Elaine Murray: This is an operational matter for  sportscotland. However, I understand that  sportscotland has arranged to meet Federation representatives tomorrow.

Teachers

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to continue funding for the Scottish Teacher Release Scheme should funding for that scheme expire and what its position is on the need to ensure that teachers who participate in the scheme can continue to be released from their duties in order to ensure that children are able to participate in their chosen sport.

Dr Elaine Murray: The Teacher Release Scheme operated by  sportscotland is in the final year of a three year funding commitment.  Sportscotland will be reviewing the scheme in consultation with interested parties over the next few months.

Water Supply

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what consultation it has had with other European Union countries on fluoridation of the public water supply and what consideration it has given to the rejection of such fluoridation by Germany, Belgium, Sweden, Italy, Denmark, Holland and France.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Scottish Executive has not formally consulted widely outwith Scotland on how best to improve our children’s oral health. The Executive will take account of the views expressed by the people of Scotland in response to the consultation document Towards Better Oral Health in Children , published on 24 September. Fluoridation of the public water supply is one of a number of possible measures described in that document.

  Fluoride toothpaste has widespread support in Germany, Belgium, Sweden, Italy, Denmark, Holland and France. In France, fluoridated salt has widespread support, and in many other countries such as Australia, Republic of Ireland and America there is support for water fluoridation. For example, in USA, at present, more than 150 million people receive fluoride daily in their water supply and this is increasing.

  International perspectives on fluoridation of the public water supply are mixed and therefore not compelling in isolation.